Morocco wants to rejoin African Union – kingRABAT: Morocco wants to rejoin the African Union, 32 years after quitting the bloc in protest at its decision to accept Western Sahara as a member, King Mohammed VI said Sunday. “Through this historic act and return, Morocco wants to work within the AU to transcend divisions,” he added. Morocco has occupied the sparsely populated Western Sahara area since 1975 in a move that was not recognized by the international community. In his address to the African Union, King Mohammed urged the bloc to rethink its position on the “phantom state” of Western Sahara, saying that a political solution was being worked on under the auspices of the UN. Morocco quit the AU in protest in 1984 when the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) was admitted as a member.

Source: Manila Times July 18, 2016 06:00 UTC